pieces of california sunshine.
Why you should check out the Elizabeth Catlett exhibit. A few new books to read, and a few albums to check out including Haim, and Terrace Martin x Kenyon Dixon.
Hi friends,
I hope you're well and that you had a great weekend.
While we may be on the verge of war, smh, we are also experiencing heat surges in various areas, such as here in the DMV. I'm not a hot girl; all I do is sweat on my face and complain about being hot. However, I did trek into the city last weekend to visit the National Gallery of Art and to see the "Elizabeth Catlett: A Black Revolutionary Artist" exhibit, and it was beautiful.
Elizabeth Catlett is from Washington, D.C., and attended Howard University, which made seeing the exhibit here feel particularly special. She moved to Mexico, got married, and had a family there. Her art, a mix of sculpture and prints, speaks to the injustices she has witnessed and experienced as a Black woman in America and as a resident of Mexico. The exhibit was beautifully curated, and I loved how both English and Spanish were shown throughout the exhibit.
Also, now, seeing this exhibit over the weekend, when so much feels bleak in the world, it was the perfect time. I thought this blurb from the Washington Post review showed why this exhibit was so powerful, especially now:
Today, with the current presidential administration on a crusade against everything that Catlett stood for, it also presents a curatorial, institutional, and political problem to be solved. The overwhelming challenge that museums now face is clear: How do you tell the whole truth in an age of lies, fear, and denial? The answer, of course, is presenting history in all its diverse complexity, including everything essential to the story, and making it accessible to all people equally, regardless of rank, wealth, or status.
Here are a few of my favorite photos that I took in the exhibit:
This exhibit was one that genuinely inspired me to learn more about Elizabeth and her family, so I'll be sharing some of what I find over time.
If you're in the DMV, be sure to check out the exhibit before it leaves on July 6th.
If you are in the Chicago Area, the exhibit will be at the Art Institute of Chicago from August 30th - January 4th.
📚 READING RECOMMENDATIONS THIS WEEK:
As mentioned last week, I was excited to start reading Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer's Legendary Editorship by Dana A. Williams, which came out last Tuesday. I read the book last week and enjoyed learning more about Toni Morrison. I found this book interesting because it follows Toni as an editor, which was one of my favorite aspects of the documentary on her, "Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am.” We gained insight into her editorial process through the lens of different authors, which was fine, but I would have liked to see more about her broader impact on the publishing industry. I would, however, recommend this book if you emjoy Toni Morrison and/or want to learn more about her.
I'm currently about a quarter of the way through The Great Mann by Kyra Davis Lurie, and I'm loving it so far. I will share a review of the book next week, but so far, very good.
Here are a few releases out today that I am adding to my list:
I heard
talk about this book on an episode of the Bad on Paper podcast, and it is also being called as addictive as Love Island because, honey, we're addicted. The description sounds interesting,"You wake up in a compound in the middle of the desert, along with nine other women. All of you are young, all beautiful, all keen to escape the grinding poverty, political unrest, and environmental catastrophe of the outside world. You realize that cameras are tracking your every move, broadcasting to millions of reality TV fans. Soon, ten men will arrive on foot – if they all survive the journey. What will you have to do to win? And what happens to the losers?"
I need to read this book.
"A groundbreaking chronicle of the legacy of Virgil Abloh, whose iconic rise to the top of the fashion industry embodied the cultural sea change transforming our ideas about the relationship between who we are and what we wear—from Pulitzer Prize-winning culture critic Robin Givhan."
The Girls Who Grew Big by Leila Mottley
After reading Nightcrawling, I have been waiting to read more from Leila Mottley, and today, she is releasing her new book, The Girls Who Grew Big.
"From the author of Oprah's Book Club pick and New York Times bestseller Nightcrawling, here is an astonishing new novel about the joys and entanglements of a fierce group of teenage mothers in a small town on the Florida panhandle."
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A FEW MORE READS: Back in the day, I was a Bug Juice stan. I used to be in ALL of the AOL Chatrooms talking about the kids who got to be there so I loved reading this. The editing budget on Love Island has to be insane because they film everyday with just a one to two day delay. My boo, Andrea, wrote a great newsletter last week on how to flip the narrative. Read it here, but also subscribe to her newsletter.
🎧 MUSIC RECOMMENDATIONS THIS WEEK:
I’m starting this week with three things that brought me so much joy.
First, the new single from Kokoroko’s forthcoming album, “Just Can’t Wait.” Truthfully, their upcoming album, Tuff Times Never Last, is my most anticipated project of the year/summer. This song is PERFECT. It makes me dance in the mirror and also makes me want to go out and dance. I’m also going to their tour and will be wearing my Jordans or something so I can dance.
Next, Alex Isley’s Tiny Desk, which premiered yesterday, was PERFECT. Alex has a perfect pitch (not just saying this), and this performance was lovely. Masego came out as a guest, and I loved that one of her background singers was Muhsinah. Alex’s song selections were perfect, and she even did my favorite song, “About Him,” and the arrangement was crazy. The ending with “Thank You For a Lovely Time” was epic as well.
Last is Sasha Keable on the Terrell show. I received numerous texts about this because everyone knows that Sasha is my girl, but it was so good. I can’t say more than I love Sasha.
Now, let’s get into Friday releases.
The album I was most excited to hear was Haim’s album, “I quit,” and truthfully, it did not disappoint. The album is written as a breakup album, but it’s not all the messy, crying type of breakup, which I like. The production, which Danielle and Rostam Batmanglij did, is excellent, and the album has many high points for me. Of course, one is “Relationships,” which was the lead single from the album and still gets tons of carplay from me, but my favorite on the album is “All Over Me.” The lyrics are sexy, and the production only adds to it. When I first listened to it, I texted several girlfriends to tell them to listen to it. I also really love “Love you right.” It has a real on-the-coast, reggae-ish, feet-in-the-sand vibe. I can’t wait to keep listening to this album, but it’s a great summer album.
California natives Terrace Martin and Kenyon Dixon released a new album, Come As You Are, and it’s so good. Technically, whenever Terrace releases a project, you know it’s going to be good, but him, with Kenyon, is a perfect match.
The album opens with “Isley’s Hymn,” which features Kenyon’s daughter, and it’s beautiful–she has such a sweet voice. This song sets the tone for what you can expect: good music. My favorites are “Only Real Ones Survive,” which sounds like a contemporary Blaxploitation film, “WeMaj” featuring Rapsody, “211,” and “Tyrese,” which I wondered if was about the singer or not.
The last project I was excited to hear about was kwn’s EP, with all due respect. kwn had TikTok in a chokehold with “do what I say” but this EP is a quick but good listen. There are nine songs on the album, including an intro and an interlude. I must say, I loved the intro in addition to “talk you through it” featuring FLO and “back of the club.” This is a pretty sexy EP, so if that’s not your vibe, you may want to skip.
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A FEW MORE THINGS TO LISTEN TO: Good episode of the Girls Gotta Eat podcast, “How to Trust the Timing of Your Life.” The new album, “Melanchronica” from Bas and The Hics. Stylist to the athletes Brittany Hampton was on the Straight to Cam podcast. This is technically a watch, but Hannah & Paige trying Aerial Arts on The Giggly Squad YouTube channel cracked me up.
Before I head out, I am dibble dabbling with Apple Music. Yes, again. So with that, I have also added my favorite spring playlist to Apple as well.